Police: teenager accidentally shot by friend in Laurel County

LAUREL COUNTY, Ky. (WKYT) - Police in Laurel County are investigating an apparent accidental shooting that happened on Kentucky 552, near London.

It happened Saturday afternoon in the Keavy community of Laurel County.

When deputies arrived at the scene, two male teenagers were found near the roadway on Cooper Hill Lane. One had a gunshot wound to the stomach.

Deputies learned that three teenagers were inside a home and a 15-year-old was handling his grandfather's .38 caliber revolver in the kitchen, when he allegedly stumbled and shot his 14-year-old friend, who was visiting.

WKYT caught up with the shooter's grandfather who told us his grandson 15-year-old Kenneth Hines shouldn't have been in his home to begin with.

"I'm more upset that he broke into my house then I am about him getting into my guns. Of course that all goes together I guess," said Tom Cooper, the shooter's grandfather. "He shouldn't have done either one."

Cooper says he was out of town at the time of the shooting.

Hines called 911, then helped the victim outside as deputies arrived at the home.

The third teen, a 16-year-old cousin to the victim, had left the scene before deputies arrived.

The 14-year-old boy was airlifted from near the home to UK hospital with a gunshot wound to the stomach.

Cooper tells us he got word that the victim is out of surgery and doing okay.

Police continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the shooting and what exactly happened.

Laurel County sheriff's deputies say they haven't worked an accidental shooting in awhile, especially one involving minors.

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